Archive for the ‘Staff Corner’ Category
Monday, January 23rd, 2012
 When the year of the dragon – considered the luckiest Chinese lunar year – kicked off today, it brought with it more than the traditional Chinese New Year celebrations. It also heightened the stakes for Chinese couples eager to have “dragon babies.”
Today’s Wall Street Journal features top fertility companies – including BHED – in a front page article that explores the recent surge in Chinese and Chinese-American couples undergoing egg donation and IVF treatments in hopes of having a child in the year of the dragon. According to the WSJ, “Chinese often schedule important life events to take advantage of the luckiest times [...] even though births are trickier to plan, in 2000, the most recent year of the dragon, 202,000 babies were born in Taiwan than a year earlier.” BHED Managing Partner, Robyn Perchik, was interviewed for the piece – noting the huge surge in contracts signed for Chinese egg donors in recent months as compared to the same period last year.
Check out the full article here:
Having a Baby in Year of the Dragon Is Too Lucky to Be Left to Chance
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, Chinese New Year, egg donation, IVF, Robyn Perchik, Wall Street Journal, year of the dragon
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Monday, January 16th, 2012
BHED Managing Partner Robyn Perchik spoke to “The Fight” magazine about our role in helping same-sex couples create or add to their families.
Check out the article in the magazine’s December issue!
Egging On
Tags: "The Fight", Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, gay parenting, Robyn Perchik
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Friday, October 7th, 2011
 Lauren #12692 is 26 years old and lives in the greater Los Angeles area. She is available immediately and is very excited to help a recipient grow their family. Her personal essay is below.
“I am a middle child and only girl in my family. While most people think that means that it resulted in heavy brotherly and fatherly protection, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Being the only girl I learned to take care of myself, because I was outnumbered and not to mention the middle child. I think I always felt I had something to prove whether it was keeping up with the boys or being just as good as them in sports or hobbies. It most definitely gave me confidence and competitiveness.
Family is something I’m so proud to be a part of. My parents did such a great job showing us how lucky we are to have siblings and that we are all so loved. My childhood is a direct reflection as to what I want when I’m older, and I have my parents to thank for that. I look up to my parents a lot. When I think of all that they sacrificed for us it makes me realize how much you’re willing to do for your kids. They worked hard so that all three of us could have a private school education. They encouraged us to have extracurricular activities in music and sports and took us camping multiple times a year. I never thought growing up that I would want to be like them but now I enjoy doing all the things they instilled in us, like a passion for backpacking and hiking, football (my San Diego Chargers), music, art, fashion and being involved in my church and community.
I started volunteering at my church’s Sunday School, and I’m almost certain that’s where I fell in love with children and knew I was meant to be a mother. I continued to volunteer with children all throughout my schooling. That naturally lead me into babysitting as I got older and then becoming a certified nanny and volunterring at my pediatrician’s office.
I don’t think that every woman is born with a maternal instinct. I do know that I have it. And I do know that I can’t wait to have kids. And I have personal experience with friends who want kids but can’t have them. I can’t think of anything that would make me more heartbroken than coming to the realization that I could not have kids. It’s so amazing how far science has come in making things possible that were once so discouraging or seemed like the end of the road for some couples. I can’t imagine a better gift to someone than helping them have what I want more than anything.”
- Lauren #12692
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, egg donation agency, egg donor, Los Angeles egg donor
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Tuesday, September 27th, 2011
 At Beverly Hills Egg Donation, we’ve always been committed to providing a supportive, personalized experience for our intended parents. But we recently took steps to make that experience even better by creating a new position for our longtime Cycle Coordinator, Ellie Goldman. Ellie is now BHED’s Director of Client Services.
So what difference does that make? Actually, a great deal. Ellie is an experienced and caring partner who is there for our intended parents from beginning to end, joining forces with them from the moment they contact BHED and seeing them through the entire process of choosing a donor.
You might wonder how Ellie and BHED work differently than other egg donation agencies. Many of them operate strictly as a business: intended parents pick their donor, send their payment, and the agency forwards the donor’s profile to the doctor. It’s impersonal and clinical at a time when intended parents are craving feedback, support and empathy.
At BHED, we don’t want our intended parents to feel like a cog in the wheel of a business transaction. On the contrary: our intended parents are the captains of a team of players whose ultimate shared goal is the creation of a baby. And Ellie is both team manager and head cheerleader, working with our intended parents to reserach and consider prospective donors, communicate questions and requests to donors of interest, and provide support. And if an intended parent desires a more personal connection to his or her donor, BHED is happy to host conference calls, Skype video chats, or face-to-face meetings between the parties, while still ensuring that everyone’s anonymity is protected.
 We know that the egg donation process can be overwhelming and anxiety provoking for intended parents. Our goal is to lessen that anxiety rather than add to it. We never want an intended parent to feel rushed into making a decision; in fact, 99 percent of the work Ellie does with and for intended parents happens before BHED is paid. While some intended parents know exactly which donor they want, others may need to take their time during the selection process. At no point will an intended parent feel any pressure to make a decision any faster than is comfortable. There is no time limit at BHED, and we do not ask for payment until our intended parents have chosen a donor and we have confirmed that she is ready to be matched. It is critical to us that by the time intended parents choose a donor and sign our agency agreement, they feel 100 percent confident moving forward not only with their donor, but with us.
At BHED, we are keenly aware that this process can be an isolating one, especially for intended parents who live abroad, far from their donor and doctors. Ellie’s new Director of Client Services position was created expressly for the benefit of our intended parents so that they have a dedicated team member who is always available for questions, feedback, and support.
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Friday, September 23rd, 2011
While it may seem logical to assume that “more is more” in terms of increasing your chances of getting matched for a donation, registering with multiple agencies can actually work against you — and lead to a host of problems down the road when and if you do get chosen by a couple.
At BHED we ask all of our active donors to sign an exclusivity policy before being added to our database, in which the donor agrees not to register with, or commit to a donation through, any outside agency or clinic during her first six months with us. We adopted this policy after years in the industry and countless conversations with intended parents, doctors, and colleagues about the issues that come up when a donor is registered with more than one agency. We know that our donors are eager to get matched and help a couple in need (and the sooner the better!), but our clients have frequently told us that they’re very uncomfortable seeing donors listed on multiple websites and often shy AWAY from booking those donors who seem to be spreading themselves too thin. Beyond that, we’ve had clients who have gone to reserve a particular donor for a cycle to start right away, only to find out that she’s already accepted a match elsewhere and is – in reality – not available for several months. For intended parents who have spent weeks, months, and often longer searching for their perfect donor, this can be incredibly disappointing.
Of course, if a donor hasn’t been matched through BHED by the time her exclusivity policy expires we completely understand that she may want to register elsewhere. After six months, donors are free to sign up with one outside organization provided they notify us in writing and inform us within 24 hours of accepting an outside match.
Donors can always feel free to contact a member of our staff with any questions or concerns about this policy. As always we appreciate your commitment to our program and look forward to working with you to help create a family.
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, egg donor, egg donor agency, Southern California egg donor
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Tuesday, August 16th, 2011
You love your doctor — you’ve been with him for a long time, completely trust him, love the staff, etc. — and have just found a great egg donor who you’re ready to book. The only issue? She lives out of town. Or — even scarier — out of state. What do you do? You’re confident that she’s the donor for you, and she’s said she’s willing to travel for a donation, but how would that even work? Do you book her travel? Does the agency? And how is all of this going to affect your overall budget for the cycle?
 BHED facilitates travel cycles all the time. In fact, 20 to 30 percent of our matches involve some travel on the donor’s part. For clarity: a travel cycle, in the egg donation world, is when your donor is required to travel more than 75 miles (one way) from her home to your doctor’s office. That means a donor coming from San Diego to Los Angeles is considered a travel donor just as much as one traveling from Chicago to San Francisco (although, of course, the coordination and cost differ significantly).
If your donor is traveling a “short” distance (one that requires automobile travel rather than air), BHED’s travel policy requires the recipient to reimburse the donor for mileage at the current government rate. Your doctor will definitely want her to come to town for her initial appointment, retrieval, and likely a couple of monitoring appointments once she’s started medication — although your BHED coordinator will also set the donor up with a local monitoring facility to cut down on the travel and associated costs. As long as your doctor approves (and most are happy to do so), your donor can do some or many of her check-ups in her hometown; that facility will coordinate with your doctor and follow your clinic’s protocol.
It’s a similar story if your donor is coming from farther away (i.e. out of state). Your doctor will want her to be in town for her initial appointment, and then again for five to seven days leading up to the retrieval. The first trip will be very brief and often doesn’t require an overnight stay. Your donor will fly in, take a cab to your clinic for her appointment, and then head back to the airport to travel home. Your BHED coordinator will then set her up with a local facility (which, again, will coordinate with your doctor’s office) for her monitoring appointments and she’ll be able to do much of the remainder of the cycle from her hometown. The second trip will happen between day three and five of the donor’s stim process, and from there she’ll stay in town through her retrieval. For this trip, she’ll need a companion to accompany her to make sure that she gets back to her hotel safely after her retrieval and is well taken care of.
 BHED doesn’t add any additional fees to coordinate travel — it’s all included in your agency fee. Your coordinator will take care of everything, from booking the donor’s flight and hotel to ensuring that she has adequate ground transportation to get to your doctor’s office and facilitating communication between your clinic and the donor’s remote facility. Working with a travel donor will generally add approximately $3,000 to $4,000 to the total cost of the cycle. This includes the donor’s flights, ground transportation, hotel stay for the longer trip, and a per diem of $50 per day, along with the flight and per diem for her companion for the retrieval trip. Your coordinator will book everything directly and will work to find the most cost-effective accommodations possible (while still keeping the donor comfortable).
While travel cycles do require more coordination, we try to make things as easy as possible for both the donor and the recipients. Our staff will work with your doctor to facilitate the cycle, whether your donor is coming from across town or from 3,000 miles away, and will keep you informed with regular updates as things progress. Feel free to contact us directly if you have any questions about working with one of our out-of-town (or local!) donors.
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, egg donation agency, egg donation southern california, egg donation travel, egg donor, out-of-state egg donation
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Wednesday, July 27th, 2011
From our companion site, Ask Kate:
Q: I’ve been looking into egg donation and researching it for about three years now, and I’m at a place in my life where I think it would be beneficial all the way around. So now I just need to know how to get started, like – where to go?
A: Well, first start thinking about logistics. Translated: who will you tell, how much genetic information do you know, can you fulfill your obligation and also work or go to school, how do you feel about sticking a needle in your stomach… ? These sorts of questions.
 First of all, you’ll need help. You’ll need at least one friend who knows what’s up so that you have a support system, as small as it may be, and help when it comes time for your retrieval – you will need a chaperone to drive you home after (and it’s best your friend know what she/he is getting into, because they’ll pull up to a place that says “fertility clinic” – tell them ahead of time).
Secondly, you’ll need to know a lot of info about your family’s genetic history. Any and all “ish” in your lineage needs to be disclosed, so you’ll either need to know it, or find out about it.
Next, it’s not just a personal decision you’re making, it will take a decent amount of time and a massive amount of commitment. It will, most definitely, interrupt your daily life. Not in a bad way, but in a real way. If you have a Monday-through-Friday job that’s 9-5, your job will be affected. You will have twice-weekly doctor’s appointments, sometimes more often and possibly even daily as you approach your retrieval date. Once you have the retrieval, you’ll need a solid 4-5 days to recuperate. Depending on your body, you may need to be on your couch, not sitting at your desk. And the calendar you follow will be exact. The dosage is exact, the time of injection is exact – your life will revolve around your schedule of medication. But the timeframe is NOT exact, so you’re beheld to a timeline that might change.
And lastly, you have to consider the fact that you’ll be injecting a needle into your abdomen (or thigh, but abdomen is easier, oddly) once, sometimes twice a day. If you’re squeamish and/or hate needles and/or doctors and/or are afraid of anesthesia, this is not for you.
It’s a to-do for a few weeks. You don’t have to commit to two years of egg donation like I did, but it’s also not a decision that should be entered into lightly. Read up on my blog and see what you think, and if you’re into the ride, take it. It’s the most amazing experience I’ve gone through.
- Kate, 6-time BHED donor
Also, as a staff side note: We always recommend registering with an agency if you decide to pursue egg donation. This process involves a lot of coordination, especially if you’re asked to travel, and a good agency will guide you through the process from start to finish, help make all of your arrangements, and refer you to a great attorney when it comes time to review your donor contract. When you find an agency you feel good about, you can generally start the process by applying on their website. BHED will also schedule a time for you to come in for an in-person interview (or send you a webcam if you live out of the immediate area) so we can meet you face-to-face and you can discuss any questions you have with a member of our donor team. Best of luck!
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, egg donation, egg donation agency, egg donor, how to become an egg donor
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Sunday, July 10th, 2011
As observed by “Donor Diva”, disclosure seems to be a hot topic in the egg donation community this week! Â This great post comes from Fertility Authority (www.fertilityauthority.com).
http://www.fertilityauthority.com/blogger/donor-diva/2011/06/29/egg-donation-disclosure
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Wednesday, June 8th, 2011
 Often, egg donors inquire about egg donation and expect that they will be donating just one of their eggs to an infertile couple. It just doesn’t work that way. When an egg donor is matched with a recipient, they are contracted to donate the eggs that they produce in a particular menstrual cycle. During that cycle, the physician that the donor is seeing intentionally increases the number of eggs that are produced. While a “normal” cycle might result in one or two eggs released in a month, those numbers would be cause to cancel an egg donor cycle prior to retrieval.
The number of eggs produced and donated in an egg donor cycle can range from about 8 to as many as 40 (although that is very, very rare). The average cycle results in a retrieval of between 12 and 20 eggs. The eggs are fertilized after retrieval, and often not all of them will successfully develop into embryos. About 12 to 14 healthy embryos generally result from 20 eggs. Some of these embryos (possibly 2) will be transferred to the recipient or a gestational carrier, and the remainder are frozen for future use.
We always encourage any questions a prospective donor might have. Please refer to our main site for more information about becoming a donor and feel free to contact us directly at any time.
- Ellie Goldman, BHED Cycle Coordinator
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, egg donation information, egg donor, egg donor question
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Monday, June 6th, 2011
 One of the questions Intended Parents often ask is “Can you recommend a good doctor?”. Other variations include “Should I stay with my current doctor?”, “Should I move to a doctor closer to where the egg donor lives?”, and sometimes “I’m not sure if I should move doctors or not – what do you think?”
Here are the answers to those questions, in our opinion…
1) “Can you recommend a good doctor?” Yes, we can provide recommendations for you.
We have been fortunate enough to work with many of the top Reproductive Endocrinologists (“fertility doctors”) in the country, and from those experiences (and client feedback) we have a good sense of who most of the better doctors are. We base our recommendations on a number of factors, including:
- General reputation and feedback from past patients
- Quality and professionalism of the office staff (front office, nursing, etc.)
- General compliance with current “industry standards”, including information such as number of embryos typically implanted, compliance with common testing, administration of medication, etc. (Note that since we are not physicians, we cannot comment, and would not deign to comment, on any particular doctor’s medical protocol. However, when we see a lower success rate and highly unusual protocol used, we get concerned…)
- General office “vibe” (for example, many clinics with in-house egg donor programs are very negative towards working with agencies)
- Specific success rates (sometimes per SART, sometimes per our own information or in-house statistics)
Note that we do not limit our work to any particular group or clinic, but as we gather first-hand information, we will use it to help our clients make the best choice for them.
2) “Should I stay with my current doctor?” “Should I move to a doctor closer to where the donor lives?” That all depends…
We believe that the most important criteria in choosing or keeping your physician include:
- Your comfort level with and trust in your doctor. If you love your doctor and totally trust him or her, as long as they are supportive of using an egg donor from an agency, definitely keep that doctor. We think that if you are calm during the process, and are willing to do what your doctor says because you trust in that doctor, you are more likely to have a successful cycle. This is only said from anecdotal evidence and other’s opinions, but being in a good place psychologically as you’re on buckets of hormones (and going through a somewhat surreal process) can’t help but benefit you.
 If finances are an issue (as they generally are) and you choose an egg donor from another city, you might want to consider moving to a doctor in that city. However, if you love your current doctor, the difference in dollars is probably irrelevant — certainly in the long term. If you do choose to use or keep a doctor in a city far from where the donor lives, make sure that you’re aware of the outside monitoring costs as early in the process as possible. (The finance person at the doctor’s office, along with our cycle coordinator, can help you with that.) The less surprises that happen in this process, the better.
All of BHED’s clients are assigned a cycle coordinator — a senior member of our staff who follows your case through from the time you choose your donor until retrieval (and often, beyond.) The Cycle Coordinators will be in regular contact with your doctor’s office from the time you sign your contract with us, and she will alert you if we have any unexpected challenges with the doctor’s office. Most of the time things work out just fine.
Note that we stay with you until you become pregnant or decide to discontinue trying. Your choice of doctor is certainly an important part of this process, and is one of the keys to the success of your pursuit to begin or build your family.
We look forward to helping you realize your dream through egg donation!
Tags: Beverly Hills Egg Donation, BHED, egg donation, egg donor, egg donor agency, egg donors, fertility doctor, fertility doctors, Reproductive Endocrinologists
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When the year of the dragon – considered the luckiest Chinese lunar year – kicked off today, it brought with it more than the traditional Chinese New Year celebrations. It also heightened the stakes for Chinese couples eager to have “dragon babies.”
